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Girls acclimatising well on Day 2

The second day of the AFC U14 Girls Festival of Football tournament in Vietnam, saw the girls acclimatize better to the conditions and as such the performances were improved upon from Day 1.

The second day of the AFC U14 Girls Festival of Football tournament in Vietnam, saw the girls acclimatize better to the conditions and as such the performances were improved upon from Day 1.

Although the quality of opposition wasn-t as tough the girls still had to go out there and do the business and the first two games of the day, certainly showed what they are capable of.

It was another day of three matches with Team 2 this time playing twice during the day and Team 1 just the once.

Team 2 - Australia 6-0 Singapore
We showed we had learned from our first game with a dominating performance against Singapore early on day 2. Playing a much more controlled game the player-s priority was to keep possession and build play from the back patiently. We started very well and Lucy Metcalfe proved she had fully recovered from yesterday-s heat stroke by playing an important role in our attacks down the left hand side. Annika Clayton playing in an advanced midfield role opened the scoring when she intercepted a pass from a Singapore defender and calmly slotted the ball into the corner; this was closely followed by a quality finish from Adriana Jones after a great through ball from Metcalfe. With two early goals under our belt the team grew in confidence and began to look more and more comfortable in possession with the team producing long passages of play ending with shots at goal and it was evident that Singapore were struggling to deal with our 2 wide players as we switched play regularly to bring them into the game. Alisha Bass scored our third just after having a good goal disallowed for offside. Clayton scored her second with a half volley from 15 metres out and Bass scored our fifth from around the edge of the box. The scoring was finished off by a late goal from Jones following good work from Alanna Kennedy. The one negative to the game was the injury to Julia Sardo with an ankle ligament sprain that will keep her out of the remaining games. Melissa Caceres and Mikaela Howell played important roles linking with the back four and supplying good service to the strikers and wide players. Our style and quality of play were much improved and we now needed to be able to lift the tempo and intensity of our play when we played Korea in the Afternoon.

Team 1 - Australia 4 - 0 Thailand
Australia were first to dictate the flow of the game with an early intercept in midfield that lead to the first goal, a clever flick from Alanna Kennedy found Meg McLaughlin and a precise first time finish was reward for our positive start. Thailand had few chances in the game with a dominant back four of Jordan Evans, Elizabeth Ralston, Chantelle Ryder and Isobel Cootes winning balls and playing out from the back. Good movement in midfield and accurate passing allowed the strikers to push high and use the width, which kept the opposing defence very deep and allowed us to keep possession at the back and in midfield. Our flank play was improving as the players were getting a better understanding of the 4:3:3 formation and it was good to see our next 3 goals 2 OG-s and a second from McLaughlin all came as a result of good passing and movement in the wide areas. The score line showed our dominance against a well disciplined and determined side but more importantly the understanding of the new system of play and the adaptation of our style in these conditions was pleasing for the coaching staff and recognised by the players.

Team 2 - Australia 0-1 Korea
With Julia Sardo missing through injury Jessie Williams came into the side in the wide right position. Against a physically strong Korean side we were made to compete for every ball and after being caught in possession a few times in the early minutes the team adapted and began to move the ball quicker and more accurately. Melissa Caceres and Mikaela Howell were very busy in midfield and always looking to support our back four that were trying to play out at every opportunity and the slightly built Caceres showing that she could be just as physical as her bigger opponents when it was needed. Most of our attacks were coming down our right flank with fullback Natalie Tobin getting forward well and linking well with Williams and Caceres. Both defences were strong and well disciplined and shooting opportunities were hard to come by; we restricted Korea to attempts from long distance which Brianna Davey in goal handled without any trouble. Our best chances to score came from good combination play down our right flank with Jessie Williams and Annika Clayton providing dangerous crosses which could have resulted in goals for Adriana Jones and Alisha Bass. A lapse in concentration on our left side lead to Korea-s only clear cut chance but a good run to the near post and an unstoppable finish put them one up. We showed good character and discipline following the goal, keeping to our game plan and not getting anxious or panicking. We kept our passing game going to the final minute and never gave up but to Korea-s credit they defended very effectively as we searched for an equaliser late in the game. Our players were very disappointed coming off but we knew we had made a big step forward in our learning against a very good Korean side.